Hard Cigars?! - Storage Problem?

[sean]

This is the second time this had happened. I have some JdN Dark Corojos that are moist, but have become hard - hard to cut, hard to draw.

They were sitting in my desktop for about 9 months and have not experienced any swings in RH by more than 3% in either direction, and not really seen any "wild" temp swings - never above 75, never below 65...

Any insight would be appreciated.

 

[jmatkins]

OK start with the quick questions.

Have you calibrated the your device and do you have old style or digital?
What do you use for humidufication?
Do you have a good seal on the hummi?

Start step wise and go thru each one.

Then update.

 

[sean]

Calibrated, digi, distilled water, good seal...

The weird thing is that it's only these sticks (last time it was some Partagas Blacks). All the others are fine...

 

[rr_double_rr]

Calibrated, digi, distilled water, good seal...

The weird thing is that it's only these sticks (last time it was some Partagas Blacks). All the others are fine...

I've seen this in some other dark wrapped sticks. They were in a B&M that has awesome storage, clean, humid, nice temps, etc, and yet these things were hard as flock around the cap. Tap it on a counter and it knocks hard. I didn't notice it until I got home, and figured I could rejuvenate them in my own humi.

Sadly that wasn't the case. When I went to punch them they were hard to get through, but the draw was ok. I wasn't impressed with the flavor so I haven't tried them again, but sure enough I checked the next time at the store and the rest of that box was hard, too.

I would hypothesize, aka speculate, that it has something to do with the fermentation process that makes them so dark that allows something like this to happen on occassion.

How were they when you put them in? I know it's been 9 months, but were they a little tough going in?

 

[sean]

yeah, it is really strange... they were nice and spongy when they went in. 9 months shouldn't have that much of an impact.

 

[smokinghole]

I tend to keep the images tobacco pornography out of my humi and all my cigars stay flaccid.

 

[GoingPostal]

How large of a humidor do you have? If its big perhaps you don't have good airflow and the RH is lower where the cigars where sitting? where the partagas black in the same area?

 

[veeref]

How large of a humidor do you have? If its big perhaps you don't have good airflow and the RH is lower where the cigars where sitting? where the partagas black in the same area?

I've found this to be the case with the random hard as a rock stick. The other week I pulled out a cigar in a section of my humidor I hadn't rotated and it had the same problem you described.

I'm a fan of either rotating the sticks or if you have a wine cooler, just rotating entire shelves every once in awhile.

 

[ciggy]

I tend to keep the images tobacco pornography out of my humi and all my cigars stay flaccid.

HA!

Well, first a cigar really shouldn't feel spongy. That would imply there is to much moisture in the tobacco and was stored with to much humidity. I keep all my cigars at 65% no matter if it's nc or cc. A cigar should feel firm and mostly dry in it's proper state. It sounds to me like this cigar is doing exactly what it was supposed to do in a proper invironment but should it dryout so much that the wrapper cracks or flakes the your humidity level is either too low or your not rotating them where needed.
I suggest you invest in some 65% Heartfelt Beads.

 

[bigbwalls]

I've found this to be the case with the random hard as a rock stick. The other week I pulled out a cigar in a section of my humidor I hadn't rotated and it had the same problem you described.

I'm a fan of either rotating the sticks or if you have a wine cooler, just rotating entire shelves every once in awhile.

I was going to say the same thing: rotate them. I've had a similar issue, Sean. Cigars near the top of my humidor felt like they're supposed to. Then ones at the bottom were a little brittle and hard. Every once in awhile I'll rotate them around. It's fun - you might find some gem that you forgot about.

 

[sean]

It's a 100ct that was stuffed full, so I am sure you guys are right about the lack of airflow. I went in yesterday and reorganized them just to double check for any other instances of hardening. I found that a few others on the bottom were getting firmer than I remember them being... so I took some out, put them in the coolidor, and rotated the rest in the desktop around.

Thanks!